DHAKA, May 3, 2024 (BSS) - Chief Justice Obaidul Hassan today called for government efforts to protect near-extinct Kharia language.

"Bangla is our state language, but different people have different mother tongues here. Though government has already taken some steps to protect the Kharia language, it should expedite its efforts in this regard," the chief justice said while talking to newsmen at Bangladesh Tea Research Institute in Moulvibazar today.

Chief Justice Obaidul Hassan urged the government to establish Kharia language learning centre through Kharia alphabetization by setting up contacts with Indian regions where the language is still in use.

Earlier in the day, Christina Kerkatta and her sister Veronica Kerkatta, the last two Kharia speaking persons in Bangladesh, from Rajghat tea garden of Srimangal called on the chief justice. The two sisters' parents came from Ranchi, India, and settled here in Bangladesh.